The following relates generally to a method of allocating resources in a system. More specifically, the following relates to a method of allocating resources or supplies, such as reagents, disposables and the like, in a medical diagnostic system.
Some medical diagnostic systems include a machine which performs a test on a patient sample, such as blood and the like, to determine health status of the patient. In order to do a large number of tests in a given time period, a number of such machines may be connected to make up the medical diagnostic system. For instance, if one machine can do 200 tests in one hour, then four machines connected together by a common supply of samples could do 800 tests in one hour.
In some instances, once a number of machines are connected together, the number of tests performed may not be as large as possible or as desired. Accordingly, it is desirable to allocate resources or supplies among the connected machines to perform as many tests as reasonably possible in a given time period.